For ten years now, a local community in north central Vietnam has managed a 600+ hectare forest, protecting it from illegal logging and fires.

Elephant Stream. Photo Credit: Lucile Robinson.Members of the Forest Governance Learning Group - which includes development workers, foresters and lawyers united by a desire to improve decision-making in forest policy - travel here to gauge the programme's success.

"The stream glistens in the sunshine and the forest being protected by the villagers provides a stunning backdrop to the area’s nearby ecotourism site," writes Leianne Rolington, but the social and economic benefits are less clear.